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Wrote this last semester

I had to write a tragedy article for a class last semester, so I chose my dad.   Obviously I can’t publish it but I thought it would be nice to share.

Enjoy!

________

by Laura Cerrone

Angelo Cerrone does not like to remember his near-death experience 35 years ago. So much so, his wife barely knew it even happened.

In 1976, Cerrone was 22 years old, working for the aviation service company Allied at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Jamaica, Queens. He was assigned to troubleshoot a company bus that would not turn on. Cerrone recalls the only other person was the bus driver, one with no knowledge on fixing a vehicle.

“I troubleshooted the vehicle and it still wouldn’t start, the battery was okay, so I knew the problem was elsewhere.” said Cerrone.

He proceeded to inspect the undercarriage of the vehicle. He had instructed the driver to stay in the driver’s seat with the bus in park and his foot on the brake. Cerrone remembers the moment the bus turned on – and suddenly it began to move, dragging him underneath as the driver pulled away.

“It was a burning pain. It was like a hot rash. Like I was set on fire.”

Cerrone gripped onto the bus’ chassis. “If I were to let go I would’ve been run over.”

He was dragged almost 20 feet before his screams were heard by the driver. In a matter of minutes an ambulance arrived and took the young man to Peninsula General Hospital.

For Cerrone this could have been the end to his life, or the end to his dreams working in the airline industry. As a young boy, Cerrone grew up in post-World War II rural Italy. He lived on a farm where he shared a room with four other siblings, and used an outhouse. When his father brought him home a broken bike, Cerrone fixed it. When he moved to the United States at 13, he saw opportunity all around him, the biggest of all was working for the airline industry, because to him there was nothing more powerful and magnificent than an airplane.

Cerrone had sustained lacerations running up and down his back, internally he was miraculously unscathed.

While physically he healed with a few days in the hospital and several weeks off work, he wasn’t emotionally ready to take on his job again.

Cerrone turned to a friend of his mothers named Marisa Schiavello, Schiavello specializes in spiritual prayer healing. While Cerrone attended his regular doctor check-ups to check for possible infection he also sought sessions with Schiavello. Schiavello and Cerrone’s mother would swaddle him in bandages and then pray to God for him to heal.

“Emotionally it helped, made me feel that God was on my side because I wasn’t killed.”

Cerrone now lives in a house he worked years to build with a wife and three kids, a cat, and two bunnies. He still works for the airline industry at American Airlines where he gets to watch airplanes take off and land, still fascinating his inner-childlike awe.

Cerrone reflects on everything he has now and imagines it could of all been very different.

“The scariest thing about this ordeal is that I thought it was the end of my life.”

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Breaking News

My professor asked me to put my breakup story on hold for a breaking news story that occured yesterday on my campus. I’m extremely nervous because this is such a huge story and if all goes well can be one of my most important files of my career at school. I’m nervous. I’m scared. I can do this.

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Working on an article.

I’m currently working on an article about women who drastically change their appearance/cut their hair following a break-up or other traumatic experience.  I’ve done two interviews so far and am finding out really interesting information.  A lot of it is what I anticipated but other information is new and gives a depth  about people and their coping abilities.

I really can’t wait to write it and file it and post it on here!  I definitely want to accompany it with a post about the process.

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German Newspaper Layout

I love this new layout, and I think it will be something I can handle.

Especially with how full my semester will be.  I’m taking six classes, 17 credits worth.  I’m also on the e-board in two clubs.  Not to mention I go to the gym and try to have a bit of a social life.

I just got done with my first week of classes for the new semester.  One my classes starts next week so I haven’t been to all of them.

My classes are:

Text Me! – This class is about computer mediated communication.  I’ve found this topic really interesting especially with my fascinaition (and addiction) to social media.  But now I get to learn the history of all of it, like how the Justice Department and ARPANET are two major factors in me being able to write this on my laptop.

Literature of Journalism – My professor speaks the truth in this class.  Literary journalism is something I’ve never had the chance to do, and it will be fun to add a flair of creativity to personal narratives while social commentating the way I see things.  Love it already.

Arts Writing – Writing about music, film, art, dance, theater… and the whole rest of the gambit.  My professor was a editor of the Rolling Stones magazine.  Cannot wait for her anecdotal stories and report on some of my biggest interests with integrity and the tools I need.

Investigative Journalism – Probably my favorite so far.  Taught by a New York Times reporter, I learned more in the first class than I ever did before.  This was the perfect class to take, I can’t wait to take the knowledge I gain and translate it into real impactful stories.

Advanced Editing – This class runs an online newspaper.  We are in charge of everything, assigning the stories, editing, fact-checking… we’re pretty self-efficient.  Getting a taste of ‘the real thing’ should brace me with a little more backbone for actual (and virtual) newsrooms.

Intercultural Interaction – This is the class I start next week and have once a week for seven consecutive weeks.  It’s my one credit modular course and all I know is that I will be working on some sort of project that involves a student from a foreign university.  Sounds pretty exciting, pretty stoked!

So, with all that said, most of these classes are upper division.  Which means the workload is…is… scary.  I’m looking at my homework list from this first week and don’t know how I will pull it altogether

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Court Cases

Currently writing a paper on the court case Branzburg v. Hayes. I never knew how much reading there was to do in a court case. Sunday bummer!

The case is very interesting though. If you’re not familiar with it, it is the Supreme Court case that allows courts to subpoena journalists to reveal their sources. I think the 35 year gap is also astounding. Thirty-five years ago courts were always subpoenaing journalists to reveal their sources, and it died down after that until present day where it has started back up again. I think it shows how the 70s and present day have linear circumstances.

Subpoena is also a really cool word.

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Case Studies

I’m attending the National Communication Association conference in New Orleans in 2 weeks, and I just received my badge to get in and also the book I chose.  I chose “Critical Studies in Media Communication”

I cannot wait to read it! It looks like it has such interesting information in it, thumbing through it the first chapter is about journalism during the Beijing Olympics.  I was really excited when I read that title.  There’s also coverage of racism in journalism in modern day and how the New York Times covered fires in the late 1800’s.  Fascinating.

I’ll probably get to reading it this weekend.  When I cut into it, Ill give a little non-libelous review!

 

Hope everyone is adjusting to November!

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Reminder

I was reminded today that the work I produce is copyrighted.  If anyone is going to use examples of my work, please attribute properly and contacting me would be nice.  It is my job to write stories about people and the things affecting lives, and I work very hard at it.  It pains me to see content I’ve produced not receiving the proper respect it deserves.  Even though this is the internet, the same rules apply.

The internet is not a playground for the real world, it is now where the real world is taking place.  As a blanket note, please respect all authors integrity and do the right thing.  It means the world for someone like me to be recognized and appreciated for the work I do.

Thank you!

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=]

I attended the Cable Mavericks Masters Forum yesterday at the Paley Center in NYc yesterday.  What a fantastic experience!  I took pages and pages of notes of the advice industry professionals were giving during panel.  You always feel reassured when you hear about high-level professionals and the feelings of doubt and trepidation they had when they started out.  I’m very grateful to have that experience and will take what I learned and apply it immediately to my life.

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Hooray!

Over the next week, I’ll be adding some more publications to the Featured Publications page.  I’ve already added a bunch so you should check it out!

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Much better.

I like this theme, the basic magazine, much better.  I’m just going to learn how to tweak it a bit so it’s perfect.  I will also be updating my publications page later tonight with both published and unpublished work.

I am also attending the Cable Mavericks Masters Forum this Friday in the city.  Got to work on my interview answers, but I’m nonetheless ecstatic and excited to be attending.